


Untitled 33

by riipple



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Spirits, Comedy, I don't really know what 'spirits' in the tag entails but like ok, M/M, Paranormal, Romance, spirit!Jaemin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-25
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-17 21:15:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,078
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28980963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/riipple/pseuds/riipple
Summary: Renjun wasn't gifted. He was cursed, more like. Seeing all these spirits were lame, anyways.But he meets a peculiar one, with a strange obsession over humans. And then he changes his mind.
Relationships: Huang Ren Jun/Na Jaemin
Comments: 18
Kudos: 32





	1. Peculiarity

"Renjun, I'm saying this for the last time— _please_ attend tonight's gala." His mother pleads, with an exasperated sigh. Renjun scowls. This wasn't new. Father always wanted him to attend those dumb parties. He didn't do anything anyways, he just stood there and looked pretty. 

"...Fine." Comes his answer, and he walks away, to his room on the end of the long hallway. Without even looking, he knows his mother is overjoyed. After a long drought where the Huang family hasn't shown their son's face, there's finally a chance for them to hop back into the spotlight. 

As he closes the door shut, the talisman on the frame flutters. He throws himself onto his bed. Subtle pain flares up his back. As rich as his family was, couldn't they afford softer mattresses? He lets out a grunt. A beat passes. His room is silent again, as it usually is— there was soundproofing installed, after all. His eyes drift over to the painting he was working on, the black and white reference picture dangling from the easel. He makes a promise to finish it later, like he always does. And the abandoned stack of canvases sitting in the corner of the room seem to cry out.

The digital clock lets out a _beep._ It is 5 P.M. In an hour, he'd get called down to dinner. But— right. There would be an event later that evening. He'd have to starve for two more hours. Whatever, it's not like he'd never done that before. 

More seconds pass in suffocating silence. He almost drifts off to sleep when someone knocks on the door. It opens, and the light from the hallway only makes the rest of his room darker. It's a maid, one Renjun has seen passing by countless times. She bears with her a freshly ironed suit, and a bright smile. 

"Oh, young master! I heard you've finally agreed to go to tonight's gala!" Her sweet saccharine voice bleeds into Renjun's ears. He sits up. Her smile falters.

"Yes." A single worded reply comes after a long pondering. From the crack in the door to the hallway, beyond the maid in the doorway, he sees someone— no, something. A rather translucent entity. "There's a spirit in the house again."

She blinks, shocked. Her cheerful façade crumbles immediately. "A-ah. I'll notify Grandfather Huang immediately." 

Renjun raises his hand. "No need. Just leave it be."

"Are you sure?! It might be dangerous to leave it in the house—" 

People didn't know much about the other side of spirits. When they couldn't see, they believed anything. They confused them too much with ghosts. Illogical. If one didn't have a life in the first place, then what reason would they be vengeful?

"It'll go away by itself, eventually." This seems to calm her down a slight bit. 

"...Okay. I'll just leave these here." She places the suit onto an ottoman, "Mr. Huang will be waiting for you in the foyer at 6:30 P.M." She bows her head, scurrying out of the room.

Renjun stares at the suit. How long has it been since he put one on? A year or two. Maybe. He's not that sure, either. But one thing he remembers is the sheer uncomfortableness when he wears it, and how the dress shoes feel a little _too_ heavy when he puts them on. 

He has to go. He can't disappoint the family anymore— not that the family actually could be disappointed in him— he's heard them bragging about how gifted he was in every aspect from fine arts to the paranormal— speaking of gifts, he wouldn't call _this_ a gift. It was a curse. Seeing all these spirits were lame, anyways. What did that do for him? All the other people his age at the events thought he was weird— he wouldn't say this to his face, but bless him for having Chenle as a friend— and oh. He's overthinking again.

The clock now reads 5:34 P.M. He'd better get ready.

***

The air in the car is stifling. Renjun faces the window, watching the buildings go by in a blur. His father's presence beside him is overpowering. He doesn't want to face him. The only thing he can do is look at the orange tinted buildings. The sun is setting. He briefly wonders where the event's taking place. Would Chenle be there? He hopes so. 

His father mumbles something to the chauffeur. A moment later, some bubblegum pop song fills the car. It lessens the tension a little bit, but not enough.

"We're heading to my friend's place, he has a business in security technologies, and his two daughters are quite pretty," The implication doesn't fly past his head. His eye twitches. He knows his father is trying to talk to him, and Renjun would comply, but no. He's not in the mood for that. 

They pull up in front of a sprawling mansion, a few people walking up into the front doors. It seems they're not the first ones. The door on his side swings open, the chauffeur bowing as he walks out onto the stone path. He waits for his father to get off. 

The place, Renjun realises as he walks closer to the estate, is filled with spirits. He spots a few behind the windows, human-like silhouettes staring out into the front yard. At him. He averts his eyes. It's not a good time for spirits to swarm at you when you have to be— for a lack of better word, 'professional'. 

The man at the front greets them. Introduces himself to Renjun as "his father's friend, Mr Kim". So, the one hosting this event. He throws a few praises at Renjun, about how he's such a "fine young man, suitable for his daughters." 

Renjun's not an idiot. There was a reason why his father was adamant on him attending the event— other than upholding the family's reputation. He just turned 20 a few months ago… and they were thinking about marriage already. The thought of an arranged marriage made him gag. 

He only replies with a hum. His father and the man chat a little more, before he tells them the directions to the ballroom. Damn. They even had a ballroom, huh. It's easily recognisable, if the crowds of people around the entrance weren't a big clue already. The huge double doors were wide open. 

As he enters the ballroom, he's thrown off by the sheer amount of spirits in there. A lot. He doesn't think he's seen as many as this crammed into one room. Why the hell were there so many of them here? He's not sure of the answer. The spirits were not something easily understood. Maybe they enjoyed being around many other spirits. Who knows? Not him. 

He scans the room for a familiar face, for a familiar bout of cabbage green hair. None. Chenle wasn't here today. He sighs, disappointed.

He then hears giggling from the side. He turns around. Past the body of a spirit and behind the platters of food, stand two girls looking at him, giggling as their gloved hands cover their mouths daintily. He'll take a wild guess. They were the man's daughters. So they must've heard about him already.

He walks up to them, in prince-like regalia. The girls swoon, one slapping the other's shoulder as her eyes sparkle. Renjun wants to scoff. Haven't they heard about _manners_?

"Hello, ladies," He greets, a smile gracing his face. 

One, with a silky light green dress, replies shyly, "H-hi," The other nudges her, "We're the daughters of the Kim Family,"

Renjun pretends to be enlightened, "Oh, the guy who hosted this party?" 

Her sister, donning a pink chiffon dress, answers enthusiastically, "Yes, yes!"

The two girls both exchange glances at each other. Was this what they meant by siblings being able to know what the other was thinking? Or was it just for twins? He wouldn't know. He didn't have siblings.

"Ahem," Light Green Dress clears her throat, "Would you like to dance with us? Like, it doesn't matter who you pick, but would you?" 

"...I don't know how to dance." An obvious lie, but he doesn't care.

The girls seem visibly taken aback. "Uhm? Don't you… want to dance… with us?" Pink Chiffon Dress asks.

"We could teach you!" Light Green Dress chimes in. 

"Sorry, but I'm not the best student," Renjun flashes a sheepish smile.

They've realised that he's pretty adamant in not dancing with them. They walk away, dejected. Bummer. He didn't even catch their names.

*** 

The party is _boring_. As all charity parties were. An endless game of pretentiousness and insincerity. 

Renjun leaves the ballroom. The hallways of the estate are and will always be more interesting than that stuffy place. He appreciates the artwork hung in gold frames, he peers out of the windows into the pond in the backyard. They had a few ducks, he noted. They were pretty cute.

He passes by some waitstaff scurrying back and forth in the West wing— somehow, he's ended up there. The juxtaposition is nice; him taking a leisurely stroll through the hallway, while the waitstaff hurry along, stressed. He might be inspired. The staff all disappear soon, leaving him the only one in the hallway.

There's a sound. Like a whisper in the wind. He turns around. There's no one there.

Then, _"...ly"_

What? Who said that.

_"Grammarly…"_

Renjun's eyebrows furrowed. Did someone accidentally connect to a Bluetooth speaker in the hallway? No. There weren't any speakers, not that he knew of.

Something blurs in front of him. _A spirit._ Wait. spirits couldn't talk. Or could they? 

_"Want… a break… from the ads…? Get Spotify… premium…"_

The spirit materialised in front of him. This… this was not a normal spirit. It talked. It looked like it had human clothes. It was _blue tinted_. Well, the last part wasn't that unique, all spirits had a tint to them.

A lightbulb goes off in Renjun's head, his train of thought chugging again after a trainwreck. "Are you… trying to communicate with me…?" 

This spirit must've listened to music or something. Just to communicate with people… it was smart. 

_"...Ok."_ It replies. He takes that as a yes.

Renjun takes a look at the spirit. Doe like eyes and a V-shaped jawline. It was… kind of good looking. Like someone on the cover of a _Vogue_ magazine.

No. No way. He did _not_ think the spirit was good looking. No way, never in his life. Renjun's braincells were now officially cancelled, he's calling it.

Suddenly, it reaches out to him, palm opened like it was going to grab something. Or grab _him._

Were there spirits that could hurt people..? 

He didn't know. He didn't _want_ to know. As its hand continued to stretch out, he loses all control over his legs. They wobbled, yet were rooted into the ground. His eyes involuntarily squeeze shut—

  
  
  
  


Imminent death is taking a long time.

He feels a jostle at the back of his head. He flinches harshly. But the feeling doesn't go away. It feels like stroking. He hears various sounds from in front on him.

…

They sound oddly like cooing.

…

The spirit was petting him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi if you've read to the end 💞💞
> 
> I'm like writing this fic with absolutely NO planning at all except for like 3 sentences of plot..... mhm I'm gonna wing it all the way through  
> that also means a very inconsistent update schedule......,,,
> 
> leave a kudos/comment if you enjoyed it!  
> (feedback is greatly appreciated)


	2. Curiosity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Jaemin. I'll call you Jaemin."

The spirit was… petting him. 

He opens his eyes, taking a step back. His heart beats at a hundred miles per hour. The spirit seems taken aback.

"You— you— what are you…" He's unable to finish his sentence. 

It tilts its head.  _ "Ibuprofen..?" _

His mind is in a haze. He has to get away. He stumbles back, almost hyperventilating. Sweat dampens the back of his neck.

Renjun takes a deep breath. He has to calm down. He wasn't imagining this, right? The spirit who could only talk through adverts…

"What's your name?" He tries to ask. 

_ "Your name…"  _ It looks confused, until it brightens with recognition. _ "Kimi.. No Na Wa?"  _

His suspicions were confirmed. This spirit must've learnt how to communicate through the mass media. Renjun has to applaud it, though. It's clearly trying.

"Your. Name." He enunciates every word slowly, "My name is Renjun," 

_ "In...jun… name…"  _ The spirit starts getting an idea of what he was trying to ask. Renjun twitches to correct it. Injun— no, it was fine. That was his Korean name, anyway.

_ "Me…"  _ It pauses for a long time.  _ "No.. name" _

It didn't have a name.

…

Why did Renjun sort of pity it? This mere spirit was obviously trying his best to talk to him, and it wasn't dangerous. 

A name comes into his mind.

"Jaemin. I'll call you Jaemin." Jae, for 'talented'; It taught itself how to speak, even if someone else had helped him, there must've been some talent in linguistics— and Min, for 'gentle'; It didn't seem to want to hurt anyone. And it went through the hassle of materialising just enough to be able to touch him.

_ "...Jaemin!"  _ It seemed to accept it's new name. It twirled around in the air. It was clearly overjoyed. 

The clock strikes 9:45 P.M. His father must be wondering where he went, especially after he'd shot down both of his attempts at courting someone.

"I have to go now, Jaemin. Bye." He wasn't sure if the spirit could understand it. 

_ "Let it go… no."  _ Jaemin started pouting— he didn't even know spirits could make expressions. Renjun assumed it meant something along the lines of "Don't go."

"I have to. It's getting late. Maybe we'll see each other again, sometime." He's not really sure of that fact himself. He'd be willing to come here another time, but the whole arranged marriage fiasco… no. He's not that willing anymore.

_ "And now, the weather…" _ A  _ goodbye. _

He sighs, turning around. A long trek awaits him.

...

He sneaks a glance behind, and catches a glimpse of Jaemin still looking at him. He turns around instantaneously.

  
  


***

  
  


"Where'd you go, son?" Father asks him, a glass of champagne in his hand.

"I just wandered around the estate," Renjun says, short and simple. Moments pass. An orchestra played in the background, but he felt as if the silence was deafening.

Someone walks up to them. His father brightens, shaking the man's hand. "Renjun, I'd like you to meet him!" 

A middle-aged man in a grey suit. Renjun plasters on a smile, "Nice to meet you, I'm Huang Renjun."

  
  


***

He shouldn't have gotten attached. It's been, what? 2 days? It seemed like a week. Time crawled along as Renjun had a newfound boredom. And why was he bored, anyways? Tons of things to do— and he's here feeling  _ bored. _

Back to the topic— he's attached. Emotionally. To  _ Jaemin _ . Never once in his life he'd thought he'd miss seeing a spirit. Everywhere he goes, he thinks of Jaemin. Every ad he watches— Jaemin. He'll wonder in the middle of the day, what's Jaemin doing? Probably watching some TV. 

But he can't get attached. No way. Jaemin was a spirit, they were on a completely different plane of existence from humans. They weren't dead, but they didn't have a life either. They were the glitches of life. 

If he's attached, that wouldn't end well. Like that one summer in his childhood, when he'd stayed at a vacation house for too long and bawled his eyes out when he got home. Or when he still had his grandpa, which stayed with him for the majority of his life— the rest is self-explanatory. 

Was he  _ scared _ ? That Jaemin would be gone one day? What was wrong with him? Jaemin was just a spirit! What importance did they have?

Renjun groans into his pillow as he lies face down on his bed. What a mess. He lies there for a few moments. 

…

He can't be thinking about Jaemin all day. He needs to do something to block out the thoughts. 

His eyes wander to the easel in the corner of his room. Oh. He knows what he'll be doing, then. A book and a pen. 

***

His peacefulness is disrupted by the slamming of the door. He startles, turning back. 

What greets him is the mischievous smile of Chenle, in all his green-haired glory. 

"Auntie told me you were acting weird," He claims. He flops down onto Renjun's bed, sprawling on the covers.

"Weird? Me? Why?" Renjun scoffs. There mother goes again, making baseless assumptions about him.

"Dunno! What are you drawing?" 

Renjun instinctively covers up the spread he was doodling on. "It's nothing." 

"Why," Chenle whines, "You always show me your stuff,"

Renjun takes a peek at his doodles. He gulps. All of the same person— no, spirit. It's all Jaemin. The windows make lined shadows that cover up the ink.

"Oh! Who's this?" Chenle startles him once again, sneaking up behind him quietly. Although nothing about him could be called quiet. His gaze flickered down to the floor. Chenle's wearing those darned fluffy rabbit slippers he'd gotten him as a gag gift. Can't believe he'd wear it unironically.

"It's no one," Renjun rubs his nose. "You can't see him, anyway."

"Why not?" Chenle shrieks, and gasps, "Is he your secret lover?" 

Renjun's face heats up in an instant. "No way, what are you talking about?" Not that he'd ever mind— what was he thinking?! 

Chenle's expression morphs into a smug one "Okay, then. Keep your secrets." He leans one hand on the table.

Renjun stands abruptly. "It really isn't like that! Jaemin's a spirit!" 

"What kind of spirit has a name? You're lying, Huang Renjun!" The smile is back on his face. The one that makes his eyes turn into crescents, with a teasing glint in his eyes.

"No— argh," Renjun reaches for the nearest object— a pencil, and chucks it at Chenle. Why was he getting so worked up? This wasn't like him. What was Jaemin doing to him?

A load of giggles come from the floor. Chenle, who'd collapsed while laughing. Renjun sighs, dropping back into his chair. He stares at his drawing, brushing away his hair that had obstructed his eyes.

"He's real," He tries to convince Chenle. "He is, he really is.— No, wait.  _ It _ . It's real." 

...But was it? Was it really real? What if it was all a fever dream? What if he'd imagined the whole thing, what if the food he ate at the gala was poisoned— was Jaemin even real in the first place?

Everything lulls to a silence. The sketches of Jaemin's face seemed so sharp, so  _ real _ . From its eyelashes to the curvature of his nose— everything looked real. So believable.

Jaemin. He really wants to see it again, and he doesn't know why. The thought of it confuses him. 

"—Hey? Hey, Renjun? Did you hear that?" Chenle's voice snaps him out of his reverie.

"Mh? What did you say?" Renjun sits up in his seat. "Hear what?"

"Uh, I don't know, I heard something like 'thirty-five' or something," 

Renjun frowns, concentrating. What did Chenle hear? This room was soundproof. 

Then,

_ "Haechan cam!"  _

The voice sounds so familiar. Renjun whips his head behind him.

_ "Viewer rating of 37.5%!" _

Right in front of his eyes— The blue tint moulding the air around it— the humanoid shape— that  _ voice _ .

_ Jaemin? _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I said 'id post as soon as possible' I lied. it's been like 2 weeks I don't even know but— a long time lol !! I had a test and then something came up so like !!
> 
> turns out I'm not very good at doing chaptered fics but like 😎😎 whatever!!


	3. Incomprehensibility

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We're looking for Jaemin."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ITS BEEN 3 WEEKS IM SO SORRY

_ Jaemin? _

Lo and behold, it was right there. 

_ "Go… G'day!" _ Jaemin waves a hand, fingers spread out as wide as possible.

"Renjun? Did you hear that?!" Chenle screams from the floor, eyes wide and panicked.

Renjun can only look at the spirit in front of him. 

"Jaemin…" The name tumbles out of his mouth. He stands there, jaws dropped. The spirit twirls around, reaching out a hand to pet him. 

Again. Jaemin's petting him again. 

" _ Who _ ?!" Chenle shrieks, "What did you say?"

The words fall deaf to Renjun's ears, eyes trained on Jaemin, who noticed Chenle. It stops petting, hand resting on Renjun's hair.

"Jaemin. How did you find me?" 

Jaemin shrugs, looking around the room, as if in search of something. It points to the sketchbook laid open on the desk, pages littered with drawings of Jaemin. 

Renjun flips through the book. That… Did it find him because he was drawing it? Did the spirit sense the drawings? Ideas start flooding Renjun's mind instantly. 

"Who the  _ fuck  _ is Jaemin?" Chenle looks at Renjun, eyes wide, pupils shaking. It's almost funny to see him so scared of something.

Unfortunately, before he could answer, Jaemin surges forward, a sparkling aura surrounding him.

"Jaemin, no—" Renjun tries to warn. 

Jaemin's palm lands on Chenle's head, cupping his cheeks, its lips are pouted while cooing at Chenle. 

Chenle shrieks, and it  _ feels _ like the windows shatter inwards, curtains getting ripped, shards flying everywhere. 

The door barges open, a maid and the security guard come barreling into the room, panicked. 

"Young master! Are you alright—" 

"Sir, I heard a scream—" The maid and the security guard shout at the same time. 

"I  _ felt  _ something,  _ what _ touched me just now!" Chenle exclaims from below the table— when did he get under there? 

Jaemin seems like a deer caught in headlights, sensing that it'd probably done something wrong. Good, at least that spirit knew about  _ guilt _ . Renjun feels like his upcoming headache won't be as painful— Wait. did Jaemin just  _ vanish _ ?

He grimaces, bringing his hand up to massage his temples. 

***

Renjun speed walks out the main door, coat flying over him as he puts it on in a hurry. He rushes down the steps onto the road, looking at the vicinity. The sketchbook stays tucked between his arm and body.

Chenle follows closely after him, also donning a coat. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to find something," He sees the glint of silver from the corner of his eye, and knows immediately that it's the security guard. He sighs, coming to a halt as he lets both Chenle and the security guard catch up. 

"Sir, are you sure you should be going? Something else might happen, especially when you can see spirits and all!" 

He bites back a groan. Not  _ this _ again. "I've told you, Mr. Park, spirits aren't dangerous, they barely have a mind of their own." 

A thought festers in the back of his mind: is this why Jaemin was so special, then?

"But, still!" The security guard relents. Renjun rolls his eyes. 

"I'll be  _ fine _ . Let's go, Chenle." He grabs Chenle's arm.

"Wait? Where are we even going?" Chenle says frantically as he gets dragged down the road. 

"Don't know." 

"Then? Why are we out in the first place?" 

"We're looking for Jaemin." Renjun scopes the area. He doesn't know Jaemin much, but he's the only one who knows him. Hopefully he'll be at… He racks his mind for a place. A cat café?

" _ Who _ even is Jaemin?" Chenle wraps himself with his coat, "You keep talking about him," 

"I told you, he's a spirit!" Renjun sighs, exasperated. There's not many places here, he note. He'll have to go downtown. 

"What kind of spirit has— whatever  _ Jaemin _ has! I dunno, but spirits don't have, y'know,  _ names _ ?" Chenle stomps up to Renjun as he starts moving, and the way he's pouting reminds him of a child. Renjun can't believe Chenle's not five years old. His best friend is a childish child.

The tips of his ears turn red. "I named him." He averts his eyes. God, he would never say that out loud again. 

"You  _ what?! _ " Chenle shrieks. Renjun rubs his ears with his hands.

"I named him. I gave him a name. Jeez, what's so hard to understand?" He plays nonchalant. No way he's letting Chenle into the depths of his mind, knowing what that gremlin would do with that information.

"Huang Renjun, getting  _ soft _ ?" The scared, terrified image of Chenle is long gone at this point, eyes now sparkling. Renjun isn't sure if that's a good or bad thing. He sort of reminds him of Jaemin. What, does he have a kidult magnet or something?!

"I'm not!" Renjun clears his throat. "It was there earlier. The thing touching your face." 

"It can  _ touch  _ things?" Chenle's jaw drops comically.

Renjun chuckles, "Tsk, you're literally like a small kid." He says the last two words jabbing a finger at Chenle's chest. 

"You're the one who's small!" He rebutts, and then muttering, " _ Shoulder gangster Renjun _ ,"

"Huh? what did you say?" Renjun wields his sketchbook, threatening to hit him. 

Chenle dissolves into giggles, "Shoulder gangster Renjun!" 

"You punk…" The sketchbook meets Chenle's shoulder with little impact. 

Chenle sticks out a tongue at him, which justifies his statement. A  _ child. _ "Where are we going to find this Jaemin guy?"

"I said, I don't know. I think it'll be able to sense this sketchbook or something, with its face on it." He waves the sketchbook in front of him.

"It can  _ what _ now?"

"Maybe we can summon him with this?" Renjun flips the pages of the book.

"Sure?" Chenle shrugs, and grabs the book. He looks it over, staring at the ink drawings.

"Why am I even asking  _ you _ ? You know nothing." Renjun snatches it back. Out of the corner of his eyes, he can see a gathering of spirits near the entrance of a marketplace. Some shades of yellow, orange, a little blue, but not the right one. But at least, a good start? He remembers the gala, where it was bustling with spirits. However, he  _ did _ meet Jaemin in the quieter parts of the estate… 

"Let's go there." He points to the marketplace, dragging Chenle by the arm yet again. 

"Ya see loverboy there?" 

Renjun's eyes roll back far into his head. When did he mention he liked Jaemin romantically? This boy, always making baseless assumptions.

"One, I don't like Jaemin that way, two, there's a ton of spirits there, so why not?" Renjun huffs. 

***

As expected, Jaemin wasn't there. The only thing that they came across that was mildly interesting was some sort of frog tea set that Chenle really wanted, for some reason. 

"Ugh, why did you even drag me along," Chenle groans, dramatically draping himself all over Renjun's back. 

"You followed me here, what the heck," Renjun tries to get Chenle off his back, when he sees a flash of blue.  _ That's the shade of blue he's been looking for. _ He stands up straight, jerking Chenle off. 

"Wait, Jaemin—" It just crossed the corner. If he's fast enough, he could reach it. He picks up the pace, striding across storefronts and bounding past the corner he saw Jaemin at. 

"Renjun? Wait up!" Chenle's shout seems distant, the sound of his heart pounding in his ears silencing everything else. 

The wispy blue tail trails into a small shop. It's a bookstore, seemingly old and run down. The teal-ish paint on the front of the store is peeling off, and plants are hanging in pots from the top of the large display window.

He's about to head in, when he's struck by a weird sensation. Like someone was watching him. Turning around, he scopes out the area behind him. Just people going on their way… and a man standing beside a lamppost… looking at him… 

…

It's not an omen or something, right? 

Before his thoughts can continue, Chenle comes barreling straight into him, a grunt escaping from his mouth. 

"What are you waiting for? Jaemin went inside, right?" Chenle looks at him, head tilted. 

Renjun snaps out of it. "Yeah— yeah. Let's go." He pushes open the door of the bookstore, the blurry face of the man looking at him burned into his eyes. The feline shaped eyes that bore deep into his soul— 

A head of translucent blue hair floats in between an aisle. He runs. The spirit's behind a boy, perched over his shoulder, reading the book he was holding.

"Jaemin!" Both the spirit and the boy look up. The spirit looks surprised.

"H-how did you know my name?" The boy, however, looks scared. Renjun's taken aback, eyes scanning the nametag pinned to his uniform,  _ Son Jaemin. _

"A-ah, um, I thought you were someone else, sorry." He bows his head at the boy, then makes eye contact with the spirit Jaemin, cocking his head to the side, gesturing to follow him to the next aisle. 

Fortunately it does understand. "Jaemin— I," He's speechless. At this point, he realises he doesn't know why he even went to search for Jaemin."Um. Why did you leave?" He whispers, throwing out a random question. 

_ "Renjun? Angry…"  _ Jaemin mimics his tone of voice, looking down. 

Renjun will never admit that he had softened a little. 

"You left because I was angry?" Renjun feels like he's talking to a six year old. 

Jaemin nods, eyes shiny, like that stupid pouty emoji.  _ "No talk me angry?" _ It suggests. 

Oh. That's what he thought, huh. Renjun offers a shaky small smile, reaching his hand out. Jaemin looks at him, and back down to his hand. Its lips start trembling. 

Wait. What? Spirits could  _ cry _ ? The wails that ring through the shop make Renjun stiffen slightly. He can tell Chenle's jostled as well. Jaemin sniffles into his neck as he hugs Renjun. 

"I think… I think we should go?" Chenle pipes up nervously, eyeing the shopkeeper at the cashier's counter. 

"Yeah, let's," Renjun stands up, Jaemin's surprisingly light, what did he even expect, "go."

They head over to the front door, as discreetly as possible. As far as things went, Renjun could say he's glad, kinda. That he found Jaemin. 

Before Chenle could get his hand on the doorknob, the door pushes open. In walks the man from earlier. He looks at Renjun, staring straight at Jaemin on his back.

Renjun pauses. No way, there wasn't anyone else that could see spirits, right? No way…

The man smirks, walking further into the shop. He hears the shopkeeper greet him.

"Ten! What brings you here today?" 

Ten. The man's name was Ten. 

"Renjun! Let's go!" Chenle tugs him out of the store. "You found Jaemin, why are you so dense in the head now?" 

Renjun shakes his head, "Its nothing, let's go home." 

Nothing he did could shake of the feeling that he was being watched.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ah. hello. it's been a good *checks watch* 3 weeks, eh? 
> 
> ....................yeah I... it's justified ok, I had exams and I had to focus on that....... (,,didn't actually work because I failed one of them ..haha)
> 
> anyways on a brighter note, I kinda figured out more of the plot now ?? yay!! we also have another character?!?!?!? 
> 
> pen down your thoughts in the comments haha 
> 
> (I'll try to update more hhhhhhh )  
> (man if I ever saw my fic while browsing that 3/? is so unattractive I literally would not read it...)


	4. Clarity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Um, we're buying some books?"

The walk back home is in silence. Jaemin's still sobbing into his shoulder, and Chenle's looking at Renjun, trying to figure out why he was so quiet.

Meanwhile, Renjun's mind swarms with thoughts. That guy… Ten, was he like Renjun? Could he also see spirits? The intensity of his gaze flickers in his mind. His dark brown pupils, matte, looked like the void. Like there was emptiness in his soul. He involuntarily shivered. 

"Hey, why are you so… quiet?" Chenle finally speaks up, squinting his eyes with suspicion.

"Just thinking," Renjun shies away from the boy's prying eyes. 

"And Jaemin. What's it doing now? I keep hearing some crying sounds," He rubs his ears, "Yo, is that even possible? Where is it, anyways?"

Renjun points to the thing on his back, "It's right here. Crying."

"Eh? How even?" 

"It started crying because it thought I was angry at it," Renjun explains.

Chenle makes a face, scrunching up his nose, mumbling about how weird spirits are.

_ Jaemin isn't just any spirit, _ Renjun wants to say, but he refrains, biting his lip instead. No one needed to know the thoughts that formed in the depths of his mind.

As the house comes into view in the distance, Renjun takes another look behind him, just in case.

***

Even after a few days, his mind still drifts off to the guy from the bookstore. He's constantly thinking about him, even during lessons with Mr. Qian. God, he's been _so_ out of it lately— maybe he should go after this Ten guy? 

But where would he even find him, even? The bookstore seemed like a good place, seeing how the shopkeeper knew his name. He must've gone there often. And it's not like the guy was unnoticeable, right? He had worn a leather jacket with a sort of design on its back. It looked like a  _ 'V' _ , not that Renjun knew what that meant. And his piercings. How was there that much earrings on one ear? His name, too. Who would name their child as a number? Would Seven be a good name? Was  _ Ten _ any better?

He's trailing off again. He'd just remembered something: that man had some sort of chain necklace. Kind of silver, kind of gold— at the end of it was some sort of locket. Weird. But at least, you don't see that many people with such an interesting necklace, right?

He rolls over on his bed, burying his face with blankets. From the distance he hears the mumbling of whatever YouTube video was on autoplay. He'd left it on for Jaemin to  _ 'study _ '. He's not entirely sure how it picks up words from random clickbait videos but, at least, it makes it work. 

He doesn't know how the spirit ended up staying with him— but he's the only one that could see such a curious spirit like Jaemin, so it sort of makes sense that Jaemin would stick to him.

His eyes close involuntarily, sleep would seem nice right now.

_ "This…"  _ Jaemin starts muttering to itself.

Renjun sits up. Oh? What new thing did it learn today?

The spirit opens its mouth,  _ "This bitch empty, yeet." _

He flipped back down onto his bed, groaning. Should've seen that one coming. Did it end up watching some Vine compilation? Renjun frowns. He's somewhat worried about what videos the YouTube algorithm would start recommending to him. Should he get Jaemin some storybooks? The thin ones, for children? It seemed like it'd enjoy a story about princesses or two.

_ "Can I please get a waffle!"  _ He hears.

Yeah. He  _ should _ get Jaemin a different medium of learning. Who knows what those compilations could have? He hasn't watched one in ages. Some person screaming? 

…

_ Wait, _ no, no,  _ no. _ Jeamin must absolutely _ not  _ look at videos of someone screaming,  _ no. It'd _ start thinking that that's how humans act and start screaming as well. And then  _ everyone _ would be able to hear it,  _ and _ they'll look at Renjun all weird, like  _ 'why's this boy screaming without his mouth open?' _ Well, not that they  _ didn't _ already look at him weird. But oh, lord, the screaming  _ would  _ attract even  _ more _ attention and Renjun doesn't know how he'd be able to handle that—

He hurriedly scrambles down his bed, lunging for the laptop. In one fell swoop, he slams it shut. He looks at Jaemin, knuckles clutching his desk going white as he barely holds himself up from the awkward position he stood in, an awkward smile on his face. 

Jaemin's hands are up, it's eyes wide and confused. 

"Hey, Jaemin! We're going to the store!" Renjun says with a (fake) bright voice. 

_ "Store? Why?"  _ The spirit's head tilts to the side.

"Um, we're buying some books?" 

_ "Okay,"  _

"Great! Let's go. Right now." Renjun steadies himself, heading to the door and snatching his coat from the racks. He swings the door open, holding it for Jaemin to pass through.

The spirit blinks, floating towards the door in a haze. It stares at Renjun with puzzled eyes.

Great. It's learned how to read the room. Not a very good skill to learn at the moment, though. 

He grabs his coat, the same one from that day. Jaemin follows him as he walks out the door, and onto the road. 

The path he takes is suspiciously familiar, that's what Chenle would say if he was with him. And it is. He and Jaemin walk into the marketplace, past the stores, past a corner. 

He sighs in relief as he sees the bookstore still on the side of the road. He doesn't know why. It definitely is not going to move. 

Just as he's about to go inside, he turns back, as if expecting someone to be there. 

…

No one's there. Disappointment washes over him. What did he expect, anyway, for Ten to be there?

He sighs, turning around to push the door open—

The door's already opened, and he almost falls down face first into the floor. Almost. Because there's someone who catches him, a firm grasp on his shoulder, as he's only inches away from the floor

The person (good samaritan, really,) pulls him up, asking if he's alright. Renjun's about to answer, but the words die on his lips as he looks at the man who saved him. A face he'd only thought of for the past week. 

"Ten?" He whispers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lmao this is a p short chapter whoops
> 
> but like my friend just opened a minecraft server and I. gotta play because minecraft>>>>>>
> 
> also I might be posting a markhyuck fic next week or sumn aha


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